Guardian
by Alja
Summary: AU: The Prince of Amestris is about to choose his future wife among the royalty of the surrounding Kingdoms. Why would he possibly want to have a word with his most trusted guard Rezio the night before? What secret is he going to unravel? Originally a contribution to Royai-week, prompt "AU/Crossover", but somehow it turned into a (slightly) longer story.
1. Is it you?

**Summary: **AU: The prince of Amestris is about to choose his future wife among the royalty of the surrounding Kingdoms. Why would he possibly want to have a word with his most trusted guard Rezio the night before? What secret is he going to unravel? Originally a contribution to Royai-week, prompt "AU/Crossover", but somehow it turned into a (slightly) longer story.  
**Undergoing heavy improvement (hopefully!)**

**Disclaimer:** All characters belong to Hiromu Arakawa.

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

The only light that illuminated the prince's chamber was a small candle on the teak nightstand next to his bed. Night has fallen over the castle and the following day would prove to be an important one – the queen had invited the royal families of the surrounding kingdoms to find a suitable wife for her only son Roy.  
But instead of going to sleep to look his best on the following day, the prince had bestowed a strange task upon his valet. "Kain, please search for Rezio. I have an important issue to discuss with him."  
Kain shook his head after closing the prince's double wing door, a small candle clutched in his hands. He did not understand the prince's enthusiasm with his newest personal guardian. Sure, Rezio was a talented young eunuch and defeated every other aspirant fleetingly, but there was this slight feeling that he wasn't entirely truthful with them...

"Is the prince alright?"

Rezio's soft voice startled Kain. The slender build of the boy must have enhanced the swiftness with which he was moving around the castle. Well, he had to be sneaky not to stand out too much – most of the castle's inhabitants had black hair like the queen, whereas the boy's hair shimmered golden in the sunlight. Whenever he passed one of the kids, they looked at him in awe.  
"Rezio, his highness wishes to discuss something with you. I was just about to fetch you."  
"I understand," was Rezio's soft answer and with a court nod, he bid Kain farewell, turning to the door.

* * *

"Milord, you asked for me?"  
"Rezio!"

A handsome young man with jet-black hair and obsidian eyes looked into the caramel eyes of his attendant.  
"Do you know what day it is today?" The corners of the prince's mouth curled upwards slightly, but other than that his face held no answers. Rezio mustered his master for a couple of seconds before he answered hesitantly; he closed his eyes and their long lashes lay down on his cheekbones softly. "I'm sorry, milord, I don't."

Prince Roy chuckled lightly, scooted over on the soft bed and patted it with his left hand as a sign for Rezio to sit down next to him. He didn't even flinch. "Rezio," the prince continued, his hand resting in his lap, and turned his eyes to the window, "it's been a full year since Mother appointed you as my guardian."  
"Is that so?" was the young boy's only answer. He felt uncomfortable; there was some meaning lying under the prince's words, but he couldn't place his finger on it.

"Sit down, Rezio. It's a command," Prince Roy's deep voice resounded in the room, calm but clear and Rezio hesitated before he conquered the twenty steps to the prince's bed (he always counted distances, who knew when this information might be useful?) and slowly lowered his body onto the edge of the soft bedding, avoiding his prince's glance.

"Rezio, don't you think it's time you start being sincere to me?"  
The young eunuch went rigid. Had the prince found out? But how? Why does he –  
"When you started working for me, I was amazed at your skills. None of my Mother's candidates could match your accuracy. It instantly reminded me of the soldiers in the lost Kingdom of Creta."  
Rezio stiffened again, but didn't dare answer the prince; instead, he felt him slide closer, only causing Rezio to stiffen even more.  
"The swordsmanship of the Cretan was unparalleled. To this very day I can hardly believe that the royal family had been killed. Mother thinks it was the work of a Xingese spy. He supposedly found a weakness in the defense and money was paid for the rest. In the commotion of the king being threatened, they were able to attack the rest of his grounds, effectively killing all of his people. That's her theory."

Rezio finally raised his caramel eyes again and met the gaze of the prince once again. His heart felt heavy all of a sudden. "Why are you telling me this, milord?"  
"Because I have a rational reason to assume that you are either Cretan or have learned your skills from a Cretan survivor. I saw those skills with my own eyes - King Grumman and Mother were close companions and I visited him and his granddaughter Thereza a lot when I was younger."

Prince Roy didn't realize that he had hit a nerve, but Rezio started to shift on the bed and his eyes avoided the prince's once more.  
"Maybe. I didn't know my master well enough. He taught me how to fight and that was all we talked about, he may have very well been a Cretan. If her Majesty wishes, I can tutor the young squires to preserve the Cretan fighting style." Rezio stood up now, straightened his garments highly concentrated, but he still was painfully aware of the thorough glance the prince was mustering him with.  
"You need to sleep, milord. Your guests won't appreciate you looking worn out and it certainly won't charm the young princesses who will be courting for you."

He took a step forward to the doors, away from his prince, but a hand on his wrist stopped him. His breathing hitched as a thumb stroke along the back of his hand. "I don't care for _them_," Prince Roy murmured and Rezio felt him slide off the bed as well, standing up behind him and never letting go of his hand. "I care about _you_."

"Milord!" Rezio broke away from his grasp, turned around, and realized for the first time just how tall the Prince really was. If the Prince embraced him now, he would hardly reach the tip of his shoulders... He instantly chastised himself for those thoughts. They weren't appropriate _anymore_.

"Believe me, I was more than shocked when I found out I developed feelings for you," Prince Roy announced, sending a tingle through Rezio's heart again and a blush crept up both of their cheeks. "You were not only my guardian, you were a boy! And I was supposed to fall in love with a woman of royal descent, supposed to produce an heir to the throne," Roy's hand wandered up to cup Rezio's cheek and the latter was unable to step away, slightly leaning into the touch he had yearned for for several months, "and then I saw it. The birthmark on your neck that you so carefully know how to conceal." Prince Roy's right hand suddenly found itself under Rezio's shirt and Rezio stopped breathing as a cold metal touched his bare back. He knew what was going to come and he feared it.

"I stumbled upon you bathing, once," Prince Roy explained, the hint of an apology hidden in the tone of his words, but the sharp blade close to Rezio's spine made him unable to detect it. "And on that day, I also saw this."

Roy's wrist flicked quickly and something tore. Rezio's hands automatically flew up to his chest to cover what the now cut bandages lying on the ground had secured just a second ago.

"It's you, isn't it? Riza – Princess Thereza of Creta. You survived."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I took some liberty with the descent of the characters. I also intend to have several other FMAB-characters have their cameos and they most likely will also have different nationalities than stated in the manga.

If somebody wonders: Therezio is the male version of Thereza and Riza seems to be a variant of that. That's why I picked "Rezio" as Riza's alias.


	2. Her reasons

**Author's Note:** Please check out the first chapter again. I changed Riza's full name from "Elizabeth" to "Thereza" in the previous chapter. While Elizabeth is the name we typically connect with Riza, Thereza is the logical choice since it explains where "Riza" and "(The)Rezio" come from. And it gets bonus points for meaning "Guardian" :D

I also changed the summary of the story and changed the nationality of the spy (from Arugan to Xingese). I will possibly change other parts of the fanfiction as I progress with the story. I still don't know where this is supposed to go, but I'll try to find some ending for you.

* * *

This was most certainly not what she had planned.

She wasn't supposed to stand in Prince Roy's chamber in the middle of the night. She wasn't supposed to give into his subtle actions or his gentle touch.  
And mostly she wasn't supposed to let her cover be blown.

But the bandages that had concealed her well-developed bosom now lay on the floor of the Prince's chamber, instantly giving her the impression of being exposed though the thin brown linen shirt she wore did not betray much of her figure. She hadn't lifted her eyes yet, but she was well aware of the gaze the Prince gave her.

"It's you, isn't it? Riza – Princess Thereza of Creta. You survived."

She didn't answer, she just clutched her chest more tightly, suppressing the slight shiver that crept up her back. Both stood in silence for a couple of minutes until she felt a pair of hands brush her own slightly; Roy had draped a warm cloak over her shoulders.

"Please, let us talk about that", he offered, keeping one hand on the small of her back to lead her further into his chamber, to the lounge next to the smoldering fireplace.  
"I will ask someone to bring us tea and some biscuits. Ri-", her caramel eyes had found his obsidian ones after sitting down and Roy's breathing hitched uncharacteristically. "Princess Thereza. I can only assure your safety if you talk to me. Please, make yourself comfortable. I'll return soon."

The double wing door closed silently. Riza' shoulders relaxed and she let out a breath she didn't know she held back. Why was she so nervous? She was constantly at his Prince's side for a year now, never experiencing this kind of anxiety. But the minute he discovers her true identity, she turns back into the _girl_, young and unsure of herself.

Where was the boy, the identity she had worked on so hard for a year before becoming Prince Roy's guardian?  
She had thought her disguise to be perfect: Her father had insisted to put her through a tough training for self-defense, resulting in an unusual broad back for a female. It had taken her a couple of attempts, but after she had perfected a way to tie her breasts so it was only a matter of clothing to let her figure resemble the outline of a boy. Her slightly higher-than-average height helped along, too, and she had perfected the look after cutting her long, flowing blond hair until only a couple of centimeters were left.

Sighing, she ran a hand through her hair. Why did she miss her tresses _now_ of all times?

Suddenly, the doors of the room opened again and Riza could see Roy entering his room, though he seemed somewhat distracted, facing away from her.  
"I said, I can take it from here, Kain. I've got the tea-cart, I don't need any help."  
"But milord!", Riza heard the soft voice of Kain, one of Roy's valets, "I cannot simply let you serve your tea yourself! Please, allow me-"  
"Kain, no-!"

It was too late. The slightly younger boy squeezed into the Prince's chamber and gripped the handles of the tea-tray to wheel it over to the lounge where his eyes settled on the person sitting there. After sitting down, the fabric of her linen shirt had crumpled on her back in a way that caused it to encircle her upper body rather tightly, her breasts becoming apparent - and they were exactly were Kain's glance fell to. His mouth opened and closed, no sound being uttered.

The double wing door closed yet again and they seemed to draw Kain back into reality as his eyes snapped back to his prince. Riza's cheeks turned slightly red and she gripped the cloak on her shoulders, wrapping it safely around her torso.

"Kain, you will tell no one of this, do you understand?"

Roy had returned to Riza's side by now and lay a hand on her shoulder, not realizing she tensed under his touch.

"He-, I mean, she-, Rezio - Rezio's a girl?!", was everything Kain could think about and he started to muster the young woman from head to toe again. "Your guard is a girl!"  
"Kain, it is very rude to eye a lady like that", Roy commented, though his voice held an edge of a threat that was instantly recognised by the valet.

"I am terribly sorry, milord", Kain bowed deeply in front of the pair, adjusting his glasses, "it was not my intention to insult Rezio or to intrude in your privacy. If you'll excuse me..."  
"Two things, Kain", Roy spoke up, holding the fidgeting boy back, "Firstly, word of this will not come out, do you understand?"  
"Of course, milord", he nodded quickly, his eyes turned to the floor, "no soul will hear about any of that."  
"Good", Roy's tone lightened up, the hardness leaving his voice, "secondly, please arrange a meeting with her Majesty. It has to be before the party starts. It's urgent that I talk to her."

"Yes, milord."

With another bow, Kain backed out of the chamber, leaving Roy and Riza alone. Silence filled the room again, until it was interrupted by the soft clacking of the china Roy carefully put on the table in front of Riza. She gripped the handle of her cup wordlessly, enjoying the warmth it radiated since the warmth of the fireplace had died out. "Princess Thereza", Roy started again, sat down on the armchair across from Riza and fixed his eyes on her, "please, tell me what happened. Do you know anything about what lead to the extinction of your country? Why have you disguised yourself as Rezio instead of coming to us, seeking refuge?"

Riza closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Why did she hesitate? Deep inside, she knew she should tell him everything. What was holding her back?

"I suppose this is hard for you, but I can only convince Mother to help you if you tell me everything. So I ask you, no, I beg you", her hazel eyes shot upwards, meeting his obsidian ones which radiated a truthfulness that touched her heart, "tell me everything. Let me understand."

He was met by another couple of minutes of silence. It seemed like he had lost hope of ever learning her secret as he gripped the table, about to stand up, only to finally have Riza speak up: "It happened on the day of your last visit. You were hardly gone for an hour and", she lowered her head, pink covering her cheeks, "you had departed before I had a chance to give you the handkerchief I have embroidered for you during your stay. So I asked my grandfather for permission to follow you on horse, together with a guard of mine. We had to hurry, it was getting darker every minute and I was alone with Jean. We were about half an hour out of the country's borders, when there was a blinding light behind us. We decided to return right away-" her voice broke of and her shaking hands grabbed the cloak around her torso harshly, her knuckles turning white while the shaking spread onto her whole body. It lasted only a few seconds until she felt herself being engulfed in a hug, her body tightly pressed against Roy's. His right hand traveled up and down her back soothingly while his left hand held her in place.

Riza took a couple of seconds to listen to the Prince's strong heartbeat before she recovered and put her hand on his chest to push him away softly. It made her feel uneasy to be so close to him, especially in this state of distress. Thankfully, he obeyed wordlessly.

"When we passed the border", she continued her narration while her eyes closed, the memories becoming vivid in frond of her lids, "we found the first corpses. The nearer we got to the castle, the more corpses littered our way. And the castle -", she hesitated again, swallowing the lump that grown in her throat, "Jean told me to hide while he inspected the grounds. We both expected to see the castle littered in corpses - and we were right. Father, mother, grandfather-" That was the moment where her shield cracked and the young princess started sobbing heartbreakingly. Roy cradled her against his chest, again, despite of her attempts to shove him away and after a few seconds, she stopped struggling and gripped the soft material of his nightgown, wetting it with her tears and letting out her long suppressed emotions.

The pair sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity before the princess's sobs slowly died out, the only thing betraying her outburst being the faint tear streaks on her cheeks. As before, she gently nudged him away, maintaining a short distance between them to keep her mind focused.

"Fearing that the assassins may still be around, Jean packed what he could grasp, some clothes, gold and fled the lands with me. It was only after we left the castle when Jean saw some carved signs into the ground. On our way, we found more and more signs and we concluded that it was some sort of alchemical array."

Roy breathed in heavily, his eyes widening and mustering the girl unbelievingly. "Creta was extinguished by alchemy! So Mother was right! She suspected this for a long time now."

The blonde nodded solemnly. "Our homeland had been destroyed. Every person we knew was dead and our grief was quickly followed by wrath. Our lives didn't matter anymore though Jean was intent to keep me alive, as it was his duty. But I didn't care. All I cared about was finding who was responsible for the death of my country. And I know only of two countries that have the knowledge of alchemy."

"Amestris and Xing", Roy concluded her sentence silently. His eyes lost the compassionate tingle momentarily; it was replaced by a flash of recognition. "And by getting close to the royal family, you expected to find out whether some of our soldiers has committed this crime, am I right?"

She nodded again. "I had to know whether you betrayed us or not since you just left Creta. Jean and I decided to use our combat abilities to apply as personal guards for a member of the royal families of Amestris and Xing respectively, trying to spy on them as much as possible to find out the true culprit. It took us a while to perfect my disguise as a boy, but after we had worked it out, we parted ways to the different countries."

Riza felt Roy's eyes on her body and met his glance. Compassion and understanding was replaced by caution. "And if it was a person under my Mother's regiment that has committed this crime?"  
Riza's eyes hardened as she kept the eye contact. "I would kill him instantly."

"And if it was my Mother's command?" Her eye merely twitched while answering: "I would kill her as well."

"And if it was my command?"

She swallowed. She knew her answer, she had sworn to kill anyone who was connected to the murder of her country. Why couldn't she answer him? She averted her gaze and found she could breathe again, though her tongue still betrayed her.  
It seemed to be answer enough to Roy, who had skidded closer to her again as she now felt their shoulders touching. Unsure of herself, she looked up to him at the same time his velvet voice asked her another question: "Do you think it was us?"

She hesitated, casting her eyes yet away from the Prince, back to the empty cup of tea in front of her. "... no", the princess answered eventually.

She heard Roy sigh in relief and she couldn't help herself but smile slightly. "I've heard how her Majesty tried to find the culprit herself, sending out troops to analyse the lands of Creta. I heard her send out troops again and again, confirming herself that every member of my family was dead. And after she heard that no remnants of my body have been found, she even seemed to have increased the investigation."

"What?", Roy spun around and grasped her shoulders, causing her to gasp surprisedly, "Mother knew there was a chance you were alive?"

"Well, yes", she answered, albeit confused, "I once overheard her telling Maes-"  
"Why didn't she tell **me**?", he cursed loudly and let go off her shoulders to pound across the room, his hand tangled into his dark hair, further tousling it while he muttered something unintelligible under his breath, clearly distraught. It seemed he got a hold of himself quite quickly though, as he stopped in front of his bed and sighed.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I can't change what happened." He turned back to the Princess, eyeing her carefully, "What matters now is that you're safe. There is no way I will let you be my personal guardian anymore." Riza opened her mouth to protest, but a raised hand of Roy silenced her immediately. Funny, she thought to herself, she still chose to follow his command though she was practically his equal.  
"No. I will not endanger you. Your country may be lost, but you are alive. There's no point in letting you die some meaningless death."  
"I would only die protecting you, milord-"  
"I'm not your lord, Riza!", he grasped her shoulders again and she stared into his deep obsidian eyes which softened immediately, "Please, Princess Thereza, I cannot have you risk your life for me. You are the only royal survivor of Creta and even if your country is gone, you have to keep your bloodline intact."

Riza chuckled lightly and lay her hands onto Roy's cautiously. "Technically, I'm not a princess anymore. And after you called me 'Rezio' for a year now and seem pretty comfortable with calling me 'Riza', I think it's perfectly alright for you do so", she squeezed his hands lightly and smiled upon the memory, "just like when we were little."

Roy's cheek flushed a deep, red color as he drew his hands back, scratching his head sheepishly, and looked to his bed again that was still unused. "When we were little, you used to call me 'Roy' without any title so... please, go ahead."

"Thank you, Roy."

As she stood up from her seat, she tightened her grip on the cloak that was wrapped around her shoulders and made her way to the doors, "I should go to my room-"  
"No!", he answered quickly, grabbing one of her hands to keep her from proceeding, "I-, damn, I should have done that during the day! There is no way I'll let you wander off by yourself. You are now under my protection, my personal guest. Please, stay."

Riza cocked a thin, blond brow, mustering the boy in front of her incredulously. "You want me to stay in your chamber? With you? Roy, this is highly inappropriate, you are still the prince of this country and you are supposed to choose your future wife tomorrow evening. What would she say if she heard you spent the night before meeting her with another woman in your chambers?"

"I insist! I don't want to inform anyone of your presence before talking to Mother. I will have you prepared your own chamber by tomorrow-"

"You forget that I was guarding you for one year, not the other way round." She took a step forward, lifted her free hand to Roy's cheek and smiled at him. She felt him lean into her touch and it caused her insides to tingle. "I'll be fine, trust me. I promise I'll come back first thing in the morning."

They stared in each other's eyes until Roy looked away defeatedly, still holding her hand tightly. "Please, be safe." Riza smiled again. "I will", she answered him, stood on her tip-toes and pecked his cheek quickly. She turned away instantly to hide the rising heat in her face, but out of the corner of her eyes, she had seen Roy lift his hand to said cheek, a dumbfounded expression on his face. "Good night, _Roy_", she murmured, grasped a small candle on a sideboard and stepped out into the hallways.


	3. Memories

**Author's note:** Yup, I suck at multichapter. I changed something AGAIN - this time it's the person the Queen talked to: I changed him from Falman to Maes. I finally have a very rough concept of what is going to happen so I hope this will be the last time I have to correct something in a previous chapter to fit with the new one.

* * *

"Well, milady, how do you feel?"

It was late afternoon and the sun had begun to set behind the huge mountains, coloring the woods red and orange. The young stallion strode leisurely through the woods, carrying two passengers on its saddle: Prince Roy sat in the back, clutching the reins with his right hand while his left arm rested softly around the hips of his companion. Princess Riza had buried one of her hands in the mane of the stallion whereas the other brushed occasionally against Roy's hand, drawing a blush from the 15-year-old. His blush was only deepened by the way Riza pressed her back into his chest, seeking stability and comfort – after all, it was her first time on a horse.

"Do you even have to ask?!", she answered him excitedly, leaning a little to the left (_into his arm, _he noted), allowing her to turn her body enough to look him in the eyes. He immediately mirrored those actions, leaning to the right instead to lessen the strain on her neck from turning too much.

"It was amazing!", she continued with a grin, her eyes twinkling as she turned forward again to pat the stallion lovingly. Roy swallowed – he couldn't help but notice the changes in the girl's behavior. Once so shy and reclusive, she opened up to him much more. Just one year ago it would have been unthinkable that she'd let him touch her so intimately... speaking of which... he swallowed again as he felt her press into his body again, the new curves of her hip such a perfect fit for his large hand. He nearly lost it when Riza's hand suddenly came up to her neck, pulling her hair over her left shoulder so he could smell the soft perfume lingering on her clothes. As he was right about to take a sniff, something on her neck caught his attention.

"What is this on your neck?", he murmured, his finger inching forward, but he hesitated to touch the soft patch of skin.

"It's alright", she murmured after glancing back and encouraged him with a nod to pull down the fabric of her blouse a little. His eyes fell upon a birthmark as big as the nail of his thumb, but it had a most peculiar shape. "It-"

"It looks like a salamander, doesn't it?", Riza interrupted him softly, observing him shyly from the corner of her eye. "Father saw this as a kind of sign - it is the symbol of our kingdom after all."

He felt her shiver as he brushed his thumb over the mark and he felt himself shiver, too, and his voice lowered even more as he urged the stallion to halt and the clip-clopping of his horseshoes died out.

"Is it a good or a bad sign in his opinion?"

The young woman tugged her blouse back up and she hunched forward. Afraid to have crossed a line, Roy refrained from holding her waist again and let his hand hang loosely at the side of his torso. Instead of answering him, Riza's head suddenly snapped up, turning to the north - the pair had unknowingly had arrived at the outskirts of the castle and could hear the stress that was ensuing there. "We should head back. Our chaperons will be furious enough that we've left them behind and it _is_ getting late."

"Wait a second, please." Roy handed her the rein of the horse and slit cautiously off it, feeling her beautiful, hazel colored eyes follow him with a questioning expression. "Let's stay here until the sun has set", he explained to her and stretched his arms out toward her. "This is my favorite place to watch the sunset. Hardly anybody knows I come here often."

Riza seemed to hesitate a bit, but her tense shoulders loosened up again and the blond-haired heiress gave him a soft smile as she lifted her leg cautiously over the saddle, slipping down the horse a little faster than expected, right into the prince's waiting arms. He felt her grab his doublet tighter for balance and he exploited it by wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his nose into her hair. Relieved, Roy noted that the woman in his arms didn't flinch at his touch. Both stood calm and motionless for a minute, bodies pressed tightly to another, breathing synchronised.

Riza was going to kill him! Did she even realize what beautiful woman she was turning into? Didn't she realize how much she fazed him? Did he faze her at all? Did she realize that he was changing, too, that he wasn't the young, naïve boy anymore? Did she enjoy the new baritone his voice has deepened to and did she notice how his face was no longer round and soft, but strong with defining cheekbones and piercing eyes?

His insides started to tingle as he felt Riza's heart beating as fast as his own and he backed away slightly, but never abandoning his grip on her waist. As the hazel of her eyes met his obsidian, he lost his train of thoughts and merely stared at her, until she lifted the corner of her mouth into a half-smile, insecurity evident as she grasped his sleeves.

"So, _hardly_ anybody knows this place? As in 'Only the girls I brought here' do?"

"No", he murmured, inching his face closer to hers by the second as his right hand found and cupped one of Riza's soft cheeks and she leaned into his touch nearly undetectably. "As in 'One of my guards accidentally found me here and had to promise me to tell no one about it'. You're the only person I ever brought here."

He could already feel her soft, sweet breath on his lips, her hands encircle his neck and he bumped his nose cautiously against hers when suddenly- "Yo, Prince Roy! Making out with Princess Thereza, I see!"

It took Riza less than a second to shove Roy away, causing him to stagger. As soon as he regained his balance, Roy's glance focused on the origin of the voice and he groaned loudly when he recognised the person that stood in front of the teenagers with a big smile on his bespectacled face.

"Maes, what do _you_ want?!" After eyeing the flushed Riza for a second, Maes turned fully to his prince, bowing slightly. "Why, milord, I was looking for you and Princess Thereza. The whole castle is freaking out in light of your sudden disappearance this morning. Please, allow me to accompany you back to the castle."

After exchanging an embarrassed glance, the teenagers started to follow the knight that had taken the horse's reins into his hands to lead it back to the castle. The silence that followed made Roy feel uncomfortable, but not as uncomfortable as Maes's next words: "Oh, I'm so happy for you two!", he started and threw a glance back at the heir and heiress, his smile widening considerably, "you finally decided to tie the knot! Her Majesty will be thrilled to hear that you finally found yourself a wife, my prince!"

Roy didn't remember flushing like that in his life before he quickly retorted "She's not my wife!", realizing from the corner of his eye that Riza's face was just as colored as his own.

"No need to be embarrassed, my dear prince", Maes chuckled, "That was to be expected. After all, Amestris and Creta have been in desperate need of peace treaties and trade routes and to ensure them for the future generations, King Grumman and her Majesty have encouraged your friendship early on in hope of this development." He turned back to the teenagers and another honest smile graced Maes's lips as he saw the pair of them blush badly. "Believe me when I tell you this: We're all very happy that you two don't solely accept each other for the sake of your countries."

"Not anymore", Roy heard Riza breathe softly and felt her hand snake hesitantly into his own. With a smile, he squeezed her hand in reassurement, his eyes fasted at the setting sun and thus completely missing the happiness that spread across Maes's face in answer to the princess's bold action.

"You know", Maes started once again, now grinning mischievously as he eyed the teenagers, "dinner starts soon and her Majesty asked Gracia to lay out a dress for Princess Thereza to wear tonight and help her get dressed – have I told you about Gracia?!"  
They spent the rest of the way back to the castle with listening to Maes' endless stories of his "dearest angel Gracia", while Roy silently sulked while Riza threw him a sweet, apologetic smile.

This smile didn't last long.

Her face grew suddenly rigid, pain and seriousness written all over her expression. Her long hair seemed to draw back into her skull until it wasn't longer than a few centimeters. She grew thinner right before his eyes, the curves he had admired just mere minutes ago seemed to vanish and what was left of it was hidden under long, heavy linen clothes. Her hands now sported daggers and the only reminder of her femininity was the grace she moved around with as she trained her fighting stance, giving him the impression of a dancer rather than a fighter. This wasn't Riza anymore, Roy suddenly thought as he realised that he was sitting in a bush, presumably watching the person in secret. _This _was Rezio, his new personal guard.

While the boy danced around the small clearing, practicing the way to hold his daggers and to slash through potential threads to royalty, Roy couldn't shake off the feeling that was pooling in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't the first time the young eunuch had stirred those feelings in the prince, but it happened more frequent the more time went by. It wasn't even as much that he was falling for a _boy _\- though this was certainly not easy for him as he was supposed to once produce a healthy heir to his throne - it was more that Rezio pushed away the lingering feelings for the late Princess Riza away bit by bit; and whatever Queen Chris had said, Roy was reluctant to abandon the love he had felt for the beautiful princess.

To think that a mere boy was able to shove Riza out of his heart angered him and he had to know why he felt the way he did - this was why he was hiding in this bush in the first place. He couldn't just ask anybody for help now, could he?

The soft rustling of fabric woke Roy out of his thoughts and he focused on the young eunuch again. Rezio had started to undress and piled his folded clothes neatly next to the lake in the clearing. Now that the prince thought of it - hadn't Maes once wondered that he had never seen Rezio join the other knights and guards on bath day? As Rezio slowly unwrapped a long bandage around his chest, Roy understood perfectly well why this _boy_ would refrain from being encountered naked.

There was certainly nothing male about the swell of the breasts that came into the prince's attention now, or the roundness of the buttocks that shook out of the long pants before the long legs underneath carried him slowly into the depths of the lake.

Roy shook his head. He must be seeing things! That was impossible, a product of his twisted mind and heart that wished for nothing more than to see Riza again -

And then, Rezio resurfaced. Tiny droplets fell out of his short hair and streamed down the slope of his neck, right between his shoulders where Roy could distinguish a small, brown spot.

His heart beat increased in speed. He had to see it. Now!

Roy's eyes searched around frantically for a way to creep closer to his guardian, a way to inspect the spot that lay so poignantly where Riza's birthmark lay on her skin. Intend on not making any noise, yet incapable of hearing anything due to the pounding in his ears, Roy crept closer and closer to the lake, but Rezio (_Or whatever her name may be_, he added mentally) pulled out of the water and Roy averted his glance for a moment - he knew better than to impose on a lady's privacy. Still, his curiosity got the better of him and he looked up again only for his breathing to hitch.

Rezio stood less than two meters away from him, his lower body clothed in his pants again. He was in the middle of bandaging his (or should he think _her_?) bosom and he got a clear view of her back.

There it was.

Right between the shoulder blades, right where neck turned into torso, a small salamander shaped birthmark figuratively smiled at him.

_Riza. She was alive._

It took all of Roy's willpower not to jump out of the bushes onto the half-naked woman, crushing her against his chest and never letting her go again. But somehow he managed watching her dress completely - after seeing the mark, it was impossible for him to look away, he was too scared all of it was a dream - and gather her weapons again to return to the castle.

He waited for a few minutes before easing out of his hiding, eyes still fixed on the point of the clearing where he had last seen Rezio - no - _Riza_.

His Riza.

Warmth spread in him, from his heart to the last millimeter of his arms and legs.

_She was alive._

* * *

The next morning came way too early for Roy's taste. Not only had the emotional reunion with Riza the night before drained his energy, the memories he relived in his dreams hadn't contributed to a restful sleep at all.

And now his curtains were pulled back and the piercing sunlight blinded his eyes mercilessly.

"Milord, are you awake?"

Roy heard Kain's kind voice from across the chamber, now drawing nearer as the young valet returned to Roy's bed and pulled the covers back gently, causing the Prince to shiver.

"Good morning Kain", he answered groggily and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes when he heard Kain clear his throat. "I hope you're happy about tonight's party and not to see _me_."  
Roy raised his obsidian eyes questioningly at Kain and followed his outstretched finger that pointed right at... the prince's crotch. Roy grabbed the blanket again, suppressing the slight heat that was threatening to color his cheeks. "Rest assured Kain, I was dreaming of a beautiful woman."

Right after the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them immediately after he saw Kain blush furiously. "Nothing happened yesterday night!", he added quickly and snatched the bathrobe out of Kain's outstretched arms, climbing out of his bed and putting it on whereas Kain deliberately avoided his prince's glance and made the bed.

"Kain, have you been able to make an appointment with her Majesty?" Roy now sat down in front of his washstand and Kain was by his side right away to tie an apron around the prince's neck.  
"I'm afraid not, my prince", he answered dolefully, lathering Roy's chin at the same time. He picked up the razor that lay on the stand and pulled it gently across the slight stubble. "She seems to be in a very important meeting with her counselor. She even rescheduled the strategical meeting with Heymans in favor of him."

"That damn Kimblee", Roy cursed, though he tried to move his jaw as little as possible to prevent cuts, "I don't trust him and I don't understand that Mother does."

"I'm sure they are making last-minute decisions for your party, milord", Kain piped up and washed away the remaining foam on the prince's face, but he only snorted.

"Yes, of course! Like he cared! He's after the throne, I'm sure of it. I don't approve of Mother's forced attempt to get me married, but Kimblee nearly fainted when he heard of it. The only party he'd be willing to plan is his own wedding with Mother, but luckily, this will never happen."

"Her Majesty is quiet happy living by herself", Kain agreed readily, now focused on taming the prince's unruly hair. "Although, she tends to spend more and more time alone with Sir Kimblee-""That is the only reason I even agreed to this party!", Roy interjected and examined the robes that Kain had laid out the night before, deciding which one he would wear tonight. "I don't care about marrying, but if I can stop that man from worming his way to the throne by ascending it myself, so be it! For all I know he would exploit Amestris completely. Where does he even come from? How did he get to Mother so fast? I don't trust him!"

"Please, calm down, your Highness!", Kain put his hands onto Roy's shoulders and squeezed slightly. "All in due time, milord, all in due time." Roy leaned back into his chair, again, and Kain resumed his work, "For now, you should be focused on choosing the right wife. Vato will come later with more detailed information about each princess and their country's politics. We should go over-

"Have you seen Rezio today?"

Kain hesitated. "I haven't, milord." Roy's shoulders slumped nearly undetectably before he regained his posture. "You two seemed to have spoken pretty late into the night yesterday. I'm sure he overslept and will come here first thing after waking up. Don't you worry, my prince."

Both knew that Kain's words were not as reassuring as he had planned them to be.  
Rezio _never_ overslept.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I feel like this chapter is so totally random but the scene in the beginning came into my mind and I didn't want to delete it under any circumstances. This way, you get a little glimpse on how the relationship was between them before the downfall of Creta (and a little fluff never hurts anyone, does it?).


End file.
